Water and Land Recreation Opportunity Spectrum (WALROS) Users’ Handbook, Second Edition U.S. Department of the Interior Bureau of Reclamation September 2011 Mission Statements The U.S. Department of the Interior protects America’s natural resources and heritage, honors our cultures and tribal communities, and supplies the energy to power our future. The mission of the Bureau of Reclamation is to manage, develop, and protect water and related resources in an environmentally and economically sound manner in the interest of the American public. Water and Land Recreation Opportunity Spectrum (WALROS) Users’ Handbook, Second Edition prepared by Aukerman, Haas, and Associates, LLC Contract Number GS-10F-0207N Delivery Order R09PS80061 September 29, 2009 prepared for U.S. Department of the Interior Bureau of Reclamation Policy and Administration Denver Federal Center Denver, Colorado The Water and Land Recreation Opportunity Spectrum (WALROS) Handbook (Handbook) is designed to be flexible and adaptive. As more people and agencies apply WALROS in different locations and circumstances, we will collectively learn from experience and be able to improve WALROS. Your comments, questions, and suggestions are encouraged. Contact information and citation for this Handbook are provided in Appendix A. The original document was published in July 2004 and was titled Water Recreation Opportunity Spectrum Users Guidebook. The acronym used for this planning tool was WROS. Since that time, a variety of governmental and private entities and individuals in the United States and abroad, have applied WROS to many waterbodies and their adjacent and surrounding lands. Refer to Appendix B for a comprehensive list of places where WROS or WALROS have been applied. Since 2004, many lessons have been learned. Because of the wide and varied application of the WROS planning and management tool and the lessons learned, the Bureau of Reclamation determined that a second edition was necessary to, among other things, (1) share the lessons learned, (2) demonstrate the application of WALROS as a regional planning and management tool, and (3) express that the WALROS tool can be used to appropriately classify the recreation opportunities and experiences available on lands that surround or are adjacent to a reservoir, natural lake, or within corridors and watersheds. This Handbook is also intended to be dynamic, reflecting the input from professionals and stakeholders over time. The second edition of this Handbook and associated PowerPoint/Training Manual will be maintained on the Bureau of Reclamation’s website: http://www.usbr.gov/recreation/publications.html Table of Contents page Executive Summary .............................................................................................................. viii Frequently Asked Questions................................................................................................... xi Chapter 1 — Overview ............................................................................................................2 The Foundation of WALROS..................................................................................................... 3 The Average Visitor Does Not Exist......................................................................................3 Do Not Try To Be All Things to All People...........................................................................4 Managers Provide Recreation Opportunities..........................................................................4 A Seamless System of Recreation Opportunities Should Exist...............................................5 Aspects of WALROS................................................................................................................. 6 The Goal of WALROS..........................................................................................................6 The WALROS Classifications...............................................................................................6 Recreation activities ........................................................................................................6 Recreation settings...........................................................................................................7 Recreation experiences ..................................................................................................11 Recreation benefits ........................................................................................................14 Photos showing examples of the urban classification...........................................................16 Photos showing examples of the suburban classification .....................................................17 Photos showing examples of the rural developed classification ...........................................18 Photos showing examples of the rural natural classification................................................19 Photos showing examples of the semiprimitive classification...............................................20 Photos showing examples of the primitive classification......................................................21 The Standard for WALROS Decisionmaking ............................................................................22 Sound Professional Judgment ..............................................................................................22 Preponderance of the Evidence............................................................................................23 Rule of Reasonableness.......................................................................................................23 Sliding Scale Rule of Analysis ............................................................................................23 Scale of Degree.........................................................................................................................24 Design Criteria Used in Developing WALROS.........................................................................26 The Planning and Management Value of WALROS..................................................................27 Examples of How WROS Has Been Successfully Used.............................................................28 Resource Management Planning for Boating Capacity at Public Meetings...........................28 Interagency Cooperation and Problem Solving ....................................................................29 Regional Planning ...............................................................................................................29 Recreation Master Planning, Environmental Impact Report, and Commercial Services Planning ..................................................................................................................30 Land Use Planning ..............................................................................................................30 iii Water and Land Recreation Opportunity Spectrum Users’ Handbook (WALROS)—Second Edition Demonstrating Changes and Success in Preserving Recreation Opportunities and Visitors’ Experiences over Time ..............................................................................30 Road Closures and Land Uses .............................................................................................31 Expanding Regional Diversity and Facility Location ...........................................................31 Reservoir WROS Designations............................................................................................32 Assistance in Determining a Recreation Strategy within a Variety of Water Operation Alternatives .............................................................................................................32 Improving Management of River Recreation Resources ......................................................33 Chapter 2 —Physical, Social, and Managerial Attribute Guidelines....................................35 Physical Setting Attribute Guidelines ........................................................................................38 Social Setting Attribute Guidelines............................................................................................40 Managerial Setting Attribute Guidelines....................................................................................43 Visitor Capacity Guidelines.......................................................................................................52 Reasonable Flat-Water Recreation Boating Capacity Coefficients .......................................52 Chapter 3 —Inventory............................................................................................................55 Define the Scope of the Inventory .............................................................................................56 Define the Planning Area for the WALROS Inventory ........................................................57 Decide the Level of Resolution or Appropriate Scale of the Base Map ................................58 Decide the Time Period for Applying WALROS.................................................................59 Decide If WALROS Will Be Used in a Resource Management Planning Process................59 Determine the Effective WALROS Area under Consideration.............................................59 Identify Any Other Important Factors that May Influence the WALROS Inventory.............60 Develop a Basic Profile of the Surrounding